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Read part one here

Coffee with Milk from a Supermarket Self-Serve Machine

Q. A local supermarket has introduced several brand-new commercial coffee machines (espressos, cappuccinos, americanos, etc.). They have dedicated one for Chalav Yisrael. These machines self-clean, so there is no concern of cross-contamination with other utensils. The Chalav Yisrael milk is kept in a cabinet fridge beneath the machine, and a pipe extends from the machine into the cabinet, where it is inserted into an open bottle of milk. As each bottle empties, an employee opens the next bottle and moves the pipe over. The cabinet is always unlocked, which allows customers to confirm that there is only kosher milk in that cabinet. The supermarket is a non-Jewish establishment with non-Jewish employees and there is no supervising agency. May one regard the coffee produced by such a machine as Chalav Yisrael?

A. Chazal instituted that kosher items must be protected by tamper-proof seals. As such, the coffee machine in question should not be used. The supermarket owners should be encouraged to make an arrangement with a Kashrus supervising agency.

[Explanation based on Hebrew notes: The gemara in Avoda Zara 35b establishes the issur of Chalav Akum because of a concern of switching with milk from a non-kosher animal. Acharonim debate whether this is a Torah-level concern or a gezeira that remains in force even when the underlying concern is absent. The consensus is that it is a fixed gezeira.

R. Moshe Feinstein’s well-known leniency for commercial milk relies on government oversight functioning as effective “seeing”, but most poskim do not accept this approach. Even according to those who are lenient on commercial sealed milk, here there is a significant concern of switching: when the Chalav Yisrael bottle runs out, the worker has every incentive to use cheaper non-Chalav Yisrael milk, and there is no penalty or oversight to deter this.

The leniency of “maavar rabim” (a public thoroughfare) does not apply at night when the store is closed, and even during the day the milk is in cabinets not visible to the public. Halachic distinctions between l’chatchila and b’dieved also apply: purchasing fresh from this setup is l’chatchila, not b’dieved.] #2976*

Does an Oven Have to Be Kashered from Non-Chalav Yisrael?

Q. If someone used an oven for a product that is not Chalav Yisrael, does the oven need to be kashered?

A. Yes, it needs to be kashered. #4190*

Mother’s Milk from a Nursing Mother Who Eats Chalav Akum

Q. I was of the understanding that we should not use mother’s milk for our baby if it came from a mother who consumes Chalav Akum. Is this indeed correct?

A. Yes, it is correct.

[Explanation based on Hebrew notes: See Rema (Yoreh Deah 81:7) and Shach 81:25 and Taz 81:12. See also Igros Kodesh vol. 1 p. 238 – that non-kosher food consumed by a nursing woman produces a negative influence; and Igros Kodesh vol. 16 p. 243 – that milk from a non-Jew introduces doubts in our emuna.] #40719*

Tikkun for Consuming Chalav Akum

Q. A couple of years ago, I accidentally consumed and enjoyed Chalav Akum. I was taught that Chalav Akum can cause Timtum Halev, and I want to do Teshuva. Can the Rav give me a Tikkun for this?

A. Tzedaka in the equivalent of the meals eaten on 41 days should be given.

This tzedaka does not have to be given at once and can be given over time.

[Explanation based on Hebrew notes: See Shulchan Menachem vol. 3 p. 130ff. The classic teshuva guidelines from Tanya Igeres HaTeshuva (ch. 2) and Mishnas Chassidim (Maseches Teshuva ch. 10) are 91 taaniyos for eating an issur and 73 taaniyos for stam yeinam.

For Chalav Akum the source is not explicit in earlier sefarim, but the number 41 appears for the first time in a ksav yad kodesh of the Rebbe, printed in Shulchan Menachem. There the Rebbe wrote his ruling in response to a father whose young son – about a year and a few months old – had inadvertently been given Chalav Akum: a delivery had mistakenly brought non-Chalav Yisrael milk, the family set it aside, and someone other than the parents gave a drop or two of it to the child. In such a case – with a very young child, a tiny quantity, and likely batel – the Rebbe ruled that it sufficed to give 41 shekel/dollars to tzedaka. (The details of the story were subsequently revealed in a photograph of the letter that was subsequently published in the ‘teshura’ for the Lew family wedding, Erev Shavuos 5781, p. 39.)

Compare also Igros Kodesh vol. 5 p. 126 regarding 702 cents to tzedaka – split over several weeks – for a Shabbos transgression caused by an erroneous candle-lighting time printed in a newspaper. The bottom line for one who actually drank Chalav Akum is either 41 taaniyos, or in our generation when one should not fast – their redemption (pidyon) in tzedaka, or at minimum the cost of 41 meals where there is reason to be lenient.] #3741*

*References are available for this Halacha on the websites: www.Halacha2Go.com and www.AskTheRav.com.

Please note that these halachos apply in general situations. If you are unsure whether the halacha applies to your particular situation, please consult a Rav.

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